Introduction to list or library views

You can use views to see the items in a list or library that are most important to you or that fit a particular purpose. For example, you can create views of the files in a library that apply to a specific department or the items in a list that were created by a specific person. Views are available for the list or library you create them in.

Each list or library has at least one view. In the browser, you can modify these views and create new views. For example, a task list includes several views, such as All Tasks and My Tasks. You could modify these views by changing how the items in the list are sorted. Or you could create a new view that shows only that tasks that are incomplete.

In addition to using the browser, you can use Microsoft Access to create forms and reports that are based on the list.

Planning your view

Before you begin

Before creating a view, you may want to add columns to the list or library to enable more flexibility for sorting, grouping, and filtering the items in the list or library. For example, people may want to see only the documents in a library that apply to their department or the items in a list sorted by the project number. For more information about adding columns, see Create, change, or delete a column in a list or library.

If you are creating views that will be accessed by phones and other mobile devices, you need to consider the capabilities of the mobile devices.

Types of views

When you create a view, you first choose whether you want to base the view on:

A predefined format, such as Calendar

An existing view

Forms and reports created by using Microsoft Access

The option that you choose determines the requirements for the data in the list or library and how the information will be displayed. For example, to create a Calendar view, the list or library must contain columns that can be used for the start dates and the end dates of the calendar items.

NOTE Once created, you cannot change the format of a view, such as from a calendar to a Gantt view.

All predefined formats are not available for all types of lists and libraries. For example, there are view formats that are available only for discussion boards. The following are the formats available. Custom formats may also be available on a site.

Standard View This view displays your list and library items one row following another. Standard view is the default for most types of lists and libraries. You can customize the view in many different ways, such as by adding or removing columns from the view.

Standard View, with Expanded Recurring Events This view displays your list and library items one row after another. Use this view if you want to see each instance of a recurring event.

NOTE This view is available in a Calendar list only.

Calendar View This view displays your list and library in a format similar to a wall calendar. You can apply daily, weekly, or monthly views in this format. This view can be helpful if you want to see the items in the list or library chronologically. Calendar views have requirements that differ from the other formats.

Datasheet View This view displays list and library items in a grid, similar to a spreadsheet. This view, also known as Quick Edit, can be helpful if you have to edit many items in a list or library at the same time. This view is also helpful if you want to export your data to a spreadsheet or database program.

Gantt View This view displays list and library items in bars that track progress. A Gantt view can help you manage projects. You can use this view, for example, to see which tasks overlap each other and to visualize overall progress.

Access View Use Microsoft Access to create forms and reports that are based on the list or library.

Existing view If an existing view is almost the view that you want, you can save time by using an existing view as the starting point for creating your new view.

Settings for views

Views have many settings to help make it easier for you to quickly find the information that you need in a list or library. The following are the settings for SharePoint views. All settings are not available for all types of views. The settings for calendar views differ from other types of views.

IMPORTANT The maximum number of items in a view is 5000. You can manage the number of items in a view by using the filter and item limit settings.

Default view All lists and libraries have a default view, which is the view that people see when they go to the list or library. You can change the default view to any public view for that list or library; you cannot set a personal view as the default view. To delete a view that is the default view, you must first make another public view the default for that list or library.

NOTE If Make this the default view is not displayed on the create or edit view pages, you do not have the permissions to create a public view or the view is a personal view. To create a public view you need to be in the Designer group for the list or library, or have the equivalent permissions.

Personal and public views When you create a view, you can set the audience for the view to be personal or public. A personal view is a view that only you can see. A public view is a view that anyone can see.

You cannot change a personal view to a public view or a public view to a personal view. You can use a public view as the starting point for personal or public views. You can use a personal view as the starting point only for personal views.

When you create a view, if Create View is disabled you do not have the permissions to create a view. If the Create a Public View option is disabled you do not have the necessary permissions to create a public view. To create a personal view, you need to be in the Member group for the list or library, or have the equivalent permissions. To create a public view, you need to be in the Designer group for the list or library, or have the equivalent permissions.

Columns The columns in a view contain the information that you need to see for list or library items. Columns, in combination with other features of views, such as filters, can help you see only the information that is most important to your work. This is especially helpful if the list or library contains lots of items. For more information about working with columns to create custom views, see the Column types and options article.

Gantt Columns Select the columns that will be in the Gantt view. Title is a required text field. Start Date, and Due Date are required date fields. When you select a column, such as Title, if no option displays in the drop-down list, you must create the column to support this view.

Sort Set the order in which items appear in the view. You can have up to two criteria. For example, show the items in a task list sorted by priority and then by due date.

Filter Configure a view to display a subset of the items in a list or library by filtering them with information in columns of the list or library. For example, a view can show the documents in a library that are for a specific project.

TIP You can use some functions as filters, such as [Today] to show items when the date matches today or [Me] to show items for the user of the view. You can also combine simple equations with functions. For example, to show items created in the last seven days, filter on the Created column, set the operator to is less than, and set the value to [Today]-7 (no spaces). For more information, see the Introduction to data calculations article.

Tabular View Provides check-boxes for each item so that users can select multiple list or library items to perform bulk operations. This can save lots of time if many items in a list or library must be changed. For example, a user can select and check out multiple documents.

Group By Group list and library items by information in the columns. For example, group the items in a task list by priority and then percent complete.

Totals Displays summary calculations for the columns in the view, such as: count, average, maximum, minimum. By setting the title column to Count in a document library, for example, the view will display the number of documents in the view and in the groups in the view. The columns that are available for totals and the settings available for each column differ depending on the type of column, such as number, and the type of list or library the view is being created for.

Style Determines the layout for the view, such as newsletter. All styles are not available for all view types.

Basic Table Displays items in rows.

Boxed Displays the items in the list using a layout similar to business cards. This style is available only for lists.

Boxed, no labels Similar to the boxed style, but the labels for the columns are not in the view. This style is available only for lists.

Default The default view varies, depending on the type and configuration of the list or library.

Document details Displays the files in a library using a layout similar to business cards. This style is available for most libraries, but not lists.

Newsletter Displays items in rows with lines between the rows.

Newsletter, no lines Displays items in rows of alternating shades, without the lines between the rows.

Preview Pane Displays the name of the items on the left side of the page. When you point to the name of an item, the columns selected for the view are displayed on the right side of the page.

Shaded Displays items in rows of alternating shades.

Folders Select Show items in folders to display the list or library folders in the view with the items. Select Show all items without folders to display only the list or library items in the view, also referred to as a flat view. You may also be able to select whether the view that you are creating is applicable in all folders, in only the top-level folder, or in folders of a specific content type.

Item limit You can specify how many items are displayed at the same time (batches) in each view or the total number of items that the view will display. The larger the batch of items in a view, the longer it takes to download in the browser.

Mobile You can specify that this view is for mobile devices, is the default mobile view for mobile devices, and the number of items to display in the list view Web Part for this view. This option is not available for all lists and libraries. The view must be a public view.